Editorial

The British Gestalt Journal has been published continuously for twenty years! This is cause for celebration and for satisfaction that a relatively small community within the field of psychotherapy as a whole has the vitality and energy to sustain the life of this publication with its distinctive European yet English-speaking context.

Twenty years ago, Laura Perls had just died, and thefirst issue was dedicated to her memory. In his editorial,Malcolm Parlett, the founding editor who went on toedit the BGJ for fifteen years, wrote of the lack of astrong intellectual tradition in Gestalt. He called forthose who practise, teach, and experience Gestalt to bemore communicative and assertive, to get beyond thecaricatures and misrepresentations of being ‘some kindof left-over fad from the sixties’. He wanted the Journalto establish a written tradition that would ‘crystallizeand document knowledge-in-practice . . . actively fosterintellectual enquiry and encourage the expression anddebate of ideas and theory’ (Parlett, 1991).

The Journal’s development through childhood andadolescence has had its share of challenges, and we arehere today in large measure thanks to the support of theFriends of the British Gestalt Journal, whose financialbacking and belief in the venture have been timely andvital. It is due to friends, both visible and behind-thescenes, the wide-spreading readership, the writers, thereviewers, the Board, and the generosity and goodwill ofmany, that we are able to stand on the verge of youngadulthood with a degree of confidence and optimism.To date, we have published over 330 articles, notincluding book reviews, letters and opinions. Many ofthese have been seminal papers which have been significant in the formation of Gestalt students and practitioners.

Most of the influential voices in contemporaryGestalt theory have written for the Journal, and we haveincreasingly encouraged a new generation of writers tomake their contribution.

There is of course much still to do. Nine years ago,Cozolino wrote in The Neuroscience of Psychotherapy,‘Although Gestalt is not widely practiced, it is a uniqueexpression of psychodynamic theory that is particularlyrelevant to the notion of neural integration’ (2002,p. 60). This expresses both the challenge and theopportunity that is ours – to engage vigorously indialogue and in practice with the wider field of psychotherapy at all levels, so that Gestalt is better known, and to appropriate and articulate the richness of our approach to therapy which is so well supported byrecent neurobiological discoveries.

This issue continues in the ethos of the founders’original intention, to reflect a distinctly Europeancontribution to the field of Gestalt writing. Our authorsare from Greece, a formerUK resident now in Australia,a Lebanese writer now living in the UK, and fromLondon, the north-west, north-east, south-west, homecounties and midlands of England. The articles are allvery different in flavour, although they are rich andlively and engage with Gestalt therapy in a variety ofrelational contexts; ‘I-Thou’, ‘I-Me’, ‘I-We’, ‘I-It’.Stawman’s paper contributes to the ongoing debateabout the balance between figure and ground by exploring what he argues is the neglected place for understanding alongside empathy in the therapeutic process. Whereas empathy relates to the I-Thou, in the present moment, understanding incorporates more of the historical, developmental and narrative elements whichare equally part of the field, and, Stawman argues, partof the therapy relationship.

Hawley’s paper is a contribution to the ongoingexploration in the Journal of issues relating to sexualityand gender. Prompted as a response to ‘Case study of atransgendered woman’ by Bennett in the last issue(Bennett, 2010), but substantive in its own right,Hawley addresses the confusion of terms that oftenmuddy the waters in this area and provides somedefinitions and conceptual clarity. He usefully addressesdifferences in approaches to gender identity betweenthe UK and the USA, and discusses therapeutic issuesfrom his own practice of Gestalt therapy with clientswith gender identity issues. This is a helpful and wellinformed contribution to the small but growing Gestalt literature in this subject area.

The paper by Neil Harris is concerned with thedifficulties of working with attachment-disordered children, particularly in the light of what we now knowabout trauma and neurodevelopment. He looks at anorganisation which he sees as embodying good practicein terms of treatment for children and their families.Using a case example, he analyses in terms of fieldtheory, mindfulness, and Parlett’s Five Abilities what itis that makes the organisation effective. Interestingly,while this might be seen as an exploration of the I-It interms of the child and the organisation, Taylor’sresponse to Harris’s paper makes out the case that infact it is not so much the effectiveness of the organisationas the I-Thou of the dialogic relationship with the child and the adult of the case example which wassignificant. Both authors share their concern for lookedafter children and urge for more Gestalt practitionerinvolvement in this work.

Theodorou’s contribution is a creative exploration ofan aspect of I-Me experiencing. From his background inmusic, art, and drama, in particular Playback Theatre,he has developed a synthesis with Gestalt theory whichhe calls Process Stage Praxis. The idea of the ‘personalfilm’ is a key concept in this approach, which heidentifies as forming at the junction between figureand ground in the awareness process. Theodorou goeson to explore and elucidate this idea in relation to formsof awareness and shows how it can be important as astarting point for body work and other creative therapeutic processes.

Chidiac’s paper takes us into the ‘I-We’ of groupwork and looks at how Gestalt practice in relation togroups has changed over the last thirty years, through acomparison of the original and revised editions ofBeyond the Hot Seat (Feder and Ronall, eds., 1980,and Feder and Frew, eds., 2008). She reviews developments in Gestalt group work in clinical, community and organisational applications, and provides a valuablecommentary on continuity and change, and where thenew opportunities for development can be found.We are delighted to publish another interview in the‘In his own voice’ series, and this time Belinda Harrishas talked to Edwin Nevis about his long, celebrated andcontinuing life’s work with Gestalt as an agent for socialchange. As a living part of the history of the developmentof Gestalt therapy and organisational work, thisaccount is full of fascinating memories and conveys avivid sense of his warm-hearted presence and livelyengagement at the age of eighty-four.

The rest of this issue’s offerings include a reader’sletter and some substantive book reviews. As an endpaper, the opinion piece by Philippson on thinking inGestalt therapy provides an interesting juxtaposition toStawman’s paper at the beginning of this issue, andreaders might like to read these together.

As we celebrate our twentieth year, we are delightedto be able to report that Gestalt writing has caught onand is stronger than ever. We can now look back on awell-established written tradition in Gestalt therapythat this Journal has helped to foster. We are lookingahead to our silver anniversary in five years’ time andare already planning some special events and lookingfor contributors and distributors and new writers andfresh ideas. If any of this appeals to you, we would loveto hear from you!

Letter to the editor

Fields in practice: a response to Neil Harris and to Francis Taylor - Malcolm Parlett

Book reviews

Bringing continental European thinking to bear on the Anglo-American hegemony in the development of Gestalt theory and practice. A review of Aggression, Time, and Understanding: Contributions to the Evolution of Gestalt Therapy by Frank-M. Staemmler - Rob Tyson

Why are panic attacks and anxiety everywhere, and what can we do about them? A review of Panic Attacks and Post Modernity: Gestalt therapy between clinical and social perspectives edited by Gianni Francesetti - Katy Wakelin

Learning through play. A review of Creating Children’s Art Games for Emotional Support by Vicky Barber - Helen Gedge

An occasion for pleasure. A review of On the Occasion of an Other by Jean-Marie Robine - Peter Philippson